Collapsible laundry basket

ABSTRACT

A collapsible laundry basket includes a plurality of strips and a plurality of reinforced edges. The strips are made of PVC coated polyester fabric and are woven in a crisscross manner. When the collapsible laundry basket is not in use, it may be collapsed into a small volume. When the collapsible laundry basket is in use, it may be extended into a basket that is very stable. Therefore, the laundry basket is very easy to use and clean. The reinforced edges are provided on the lower and upper edges to acquire rigidity and stability.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the invention

The invention generally relates to a laundry basket. More particularly, the invention relates to a laundry basket that is collapsible, easy to use, hygienic and very useful.

2. Description of the prior art

Laundry basket is usually placed in a bathroom or by a washer so that people may place all of their dirty laundry in it.

Conventionally, laundry basket is made of plastic or metal; therefore, it is rigid and sturdy. However, because it is not collapsible, it can not be stored away easily and has to be placed at a fixed location. In addition, because it is usually placed in a humid environment, bacteria and foul smell may be generated by the dirty laundry. Moreover, such laundry basket is not easy to clean. Therefore, personal hygiene may be adversely affected. Furthermore, because it is placed in such humid environment, it may deteriorate and have a shorter service life due to molding or dusting.

From the above, we can see that the conventional laundry basket has many disadvantages and needs to be improved. To eliminate these disadvantages, the inventor of the present invention has put a lot of effort into the subject and has successfully come up with the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a laundry basket that may be collapsed into a small volume, is easy to use and may be carried around easily.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a collapsible laundry basket that is easy to wash and, when the collapsible laundry basket is not in use, it may be collapsed into a small volume and then be stored in a dry and clean place to keep dusts, pollutants and bacteria off

A third object of the present invention is to provide a collapsible laundry basket that is less subject to dusts, pollutants and deterioration and thus has a longer service life.

A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a collapsible laundry basket that may be used to carry objects other than dirty laundry.

To reach the objects, the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention is disclosed. The collapsible laundry basket of the present invention comprises a plurality of strips and a plurality of reinforced edges. The strips are made of PVC coated polyester fabric and woven in a crisscross manner. When the collapsible laundry basket is not in use, it may be collapsed into a small volume. When the collapsible laundry basket is in use, it may be extended into a basket. The reinforced edges are provided on the lower and upper edges to acquire rigidity and stability. A plurality of ventilation holes are formed between the crisscross strips to let out vapor generated from the dirty laundry placed in the laundry basket so that bacteria and foul smell will not be generated by the dirty laundry.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention in an extended condition.

FIG. 1A is a partially enlarged view, showing the ventilation holes.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention in a collapsed condition.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention provided with a plurality of reinforcement strips.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention, showing that the height of the laundry basket may be adjusted.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the collapsible laundry basket of the present invention with a cover portion.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The features and advantages of the present invention will be fully understood and appreciated from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawings. The collapsible laundry basket of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. The collapsible laundry basket 1 of the present invention is made of a plurality of strips 11 woven in a crisscross manner. Because regular strips made of cloth is not strong enough, these strips 11 are made of PVC coated polyester fabric. When the collapsible laundry basket 1 is not in use, it may be collapsed into a small volume. When the collapsible laundry basket 1 is in use, it may be extended into a basket that is very stable and does not need any additional supports. Therefore, laundry basket 1 is very easy to use.

In addition, a plurality of reinforced edges 12 are provided on the four lower edges and four upper edges to acquire rigidity and stability. There are several ways to reinforce the edges. In this embodiment, several layers of the fabric are folded and sewed together to form such reinforced edges 12. Therefore, no additional component is needed to achieve the goal of the reinforcement.

Alternatively, as illustrated in FIG. 3, a plurality of reinforcement strips 2 made of other material may be used to achieve the same goal.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the height of the laundry basket 1 may be adjusted to carry the different sizes of laundry load. If the laundry basket 1 has smaller dimensions, no reinforced edges are needed.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, a cover portion 3 may be provided. The cover portion 3 is structurally identical to the laundry basket 1 and is also collapsible. After the laundry basket 1 is extended, the cover portion 3 may be placed on top of the laundry basket 1.

As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, one or more handles 4 may be provided on the laundry basket 1. The handles 4 have many types and may be provided at different locations of the laundry basket 1.

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 1A, a plurality of ventilation holes 13 are formed between the crisscross strips 11 to let out vapor generated from the dirty laundry placed in the laundry basket 1 so that bacteria and foul smell will not be generated by the dirty laundry.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail hereinabove, it should be understood that the preferred embodiment is to be regarded in an illustrative manner rather than a restrictive manner, and all variations and modifications of the basic inventive concepts herein taught still fall within the scope of the present invention.

Many changes and modifications in the above described embodiment of the invention can, of course, be carried out without departing from the scope thereof. Accordingly, to promote the progress in science and the useful arts, the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A collapsible laundry basket, comprising: a plurality of strips, made of PVC coated polyester fabric and woven in a crisscross manner; and a plurality of reinforced edges, provided on the four lower edges and four upper edges to acquire rigidity and stability, wherein when the collapsible laundry basket is not in use, it may be collapsed into a small volume and that when the collapsible laundry basket is in use, it may be extended into a basket that is very stable.
 2. The collapsible laundry basket as in claim 1, wherein several layers of the fabric are folded and sewed together to form each of the reinforced edges.
 3. The collapsible laundry basket as in claim 1, wherein reinforcement strips made of other material may be used to achieve the same goal.
 4. The collapsible laundry basket as in claim 1, wherein a plurality of ventilation holes are formed between the crisscross strips.
 5. The collapsible laundry basket as in claim 1, wherein one or more handles may be provided on the laundry basket.
 6. The collapsible laundry basket as in claim 1, wherein a cover portion, which is structurally identical to the laundry basket, may be provided and placed on top of the laundry basket. 